#BlogTour: Esme's Wish by Elizabeth Foster: An Adventure Into A Marvelous World

§ I received a copy of this book to review but I was not financially compensated in any way. The opinions expressed are my own and are based on my observations while reading this novel. §

On the day Esme's father marries again, her whole world begins to turn upside down. Everyone but her has given up on trying learn what happened to her missing mother. After Esme has a vision, she walks to her late grandmother's house for answers, only to discovers a portal to Aeolia - a whole different world in which magic exists, dragons are as common as birds, and people can breathe underwater.

This creates more questions than it answers, and it turns out that her mother Ariane has lived part of her life in this magical world. Alongside with her new companions, Esme follows the clues to find her mother. Thus Esme is met with the wonders of Aeolia, but she also encounters the dark sides. Both are linked to her mother's disappearance ...

The story picks up quickly, and right after the second page you know all about the plot set-up. This is well-balanced with introducing the reader to the whole world of Aeolia and the canal city Esperance.

Foster could have easily fallen into the trap of info-dumping - putting all the information in 10 pages at the beginning. Instead the information is equally distributed over the course of the book. Even in the last 50 pages you still learn about Esperance.

"Esme's Wish" has the richest and best thought out world that I had the pleasure of reading. You can tell that Foster spent a lot of time thinking through each element. Aeolia is not the magical world were all has always been well, there are hints that it used to be a brutal monarchy that has developed into a liberal democracy over the centuries. It was a real pleasure to read a story that is set in a fictional world as rich as Earth.

Furthermore, I enjoyed the mystery around Ariane: as the plot progresses, she turns from a missing person and good mother, to someone who lead a double life. Later she becomes an artist, and a thief. Up until the very end the true motivations are kept a secret.

Foster takes you on an emotional ride into another world. Even if the plot stagnates a little in the middle, the book had me hooked because of the rich characters and the action packed into it. By the end, I couldn't put it down because I was desperate to know what was going to happen and who Ariane really was: a good person or a selfish person?

As I finished the book, the last page reminded me that there is going to be squeal of Esme's Wish: Esme's Gift, and I am already lining up for this. I can't wait to learn how the story of Esme and her mother continues!

This is definitely one of my favorite reviews from the tour! I especially like the image you included, but that’s largely because I adore the book cover. �� I love how you explored the moral aspects of this novel, especially when it comes to Ariane’s character. An exceptionally insightful, thought-provoking review!

Thank you very much for being an instrumental part of this blog tour! You are amazing. ��

This sounds such an amazing book, right up my street. I love YA fantasy, Laini Taylor is my current favourite with her Daughter of Smoke and Bone trilogy. This is going on my wishlist tonight. Great review - I can well understand why you're looking forward to the sequel! x

Mystery and great world building - sounds like a solid read. I don't read a ton of fantasy books, but info dumps are the worst. Glad to hear the author is able to successfully tell this story and build this world without making the reader suffer though a dump.